Trying to Hard
by Heroine of the Valley
Summary: PG for mild language. A Dais/Amara story that takes place after Same Side.


Trying Too Hard

**Trying Too Hard**

I do not own SM or Ronin Warriors.This is an Amara/Dais story and a side story/sequel to "Same Side."

Amara wanted to be the best runner and motorcycle racer on the planet.To warm up for the track season, she went out jogging every morning. Unfortunately, today she ran into some unexpected former teammates.

"Well, look who it is!"Jerry snarled."It's the girl who had us cut from the team!"

"Yeah," Lenny added.

"I didn't tell you to quit the team," Amara said, stopping to stretch her legs."You did that all by yourself."

"Getting in shape for the track season, I see," Lenny said."If you're going to be running then I guess there will be no room for the motorcycle season, is there?"

"I'll be in it," Amara said."Who says I can't do both?"

"We don't want a girl on our team!" Jerry shouted.

"You're not even on the team anymore!" Amara shouted back.

Lenny laughed and Jerry and he told him to shut up."Listen, girlie," Jerry said, "run all you want but you'll never be good enough to play with the big boys.Stay on the running team with all your girlfriends."

"Hey, wait a second," Amara said, "you were the ones who messed with my bike, weren't you?" her mouth raised in a sneer and she grabbed Jerry by the collar, "you almost killed me!"

"Yeah, babe, that was us," Lenny admitted for Jerry."Aren't you smart."

"I should rip your heads off!" Amara shouted.

"Whoa, easy, sweetheart," Jerry pulled her hands off his collar and straightened it out.He petted her hand."Be nice."

Amara snarled and pushed him back, "get away from me."She pulled her hands up close in front of her as they were about too close for comfort.She socked Lenny in the eye.

"Bitch hit my eye!" Lenny whined.

"You want one to match, Jerry?" Amara demanded, ready too pull her hand back.Jerry and Lenny focused on the person behind her.

_Oh crap, it's him!_ Jerry thought.

Dais was hanging from the bar of a lamppost in his armor of the tarantula.He grinned although Lenny and Jerry couldn't see the grin behind his faceplate.Maybe it was best that way because Dais grinned a mischievous grin.He pointed to his only eye and back at them.

Jerry remembered what he said to them before._I'm keeping my EYE on you._

"Let's get out of here!" Lenny cried, "See ya later, tootes!"

"Tootes?" Amara mumbled as she watched the two airheads run off.She shrugged and smiled as she looked at her fist._I knew they couldn't take me.The Amazing Amara! _She turned around and bumped into Dais."Dais!"She looked back, "so that's why those guys ran away."

"Are you alright, Amara?" Dais asked as his armor changed into street clothes.

"I'm fine," Amara replied."Just fine."She walked passed him and Dais took her arm as he noticed a tear in her eye.

"What's wrong?" he demanded, "what did they do to you?"

"Nothing," she mumbled, "I told you I'm fine.You scared them off."

"Then why are you crying?" he pointed to her tear.

"I'm not crying," she huffed.

"Amara, just because I have only one eye doesn't mean I'm blind." Dais said.

Amara wiped the tear away. "They just make me mad.That's all, really, I'm fine."She cried the tear without even realizing it.Maybe she wasn't so strong inside as she thought.She used to be able to shake off their rude comments before but this really got to her.They acted as if she wasn't good enough for any team.Who were they to say that when they weren't even good for the team?

Dais wrapped his arm around her shoulders, "I heard what they said to you.Don't believe it."

"I don't," she forced a smile."I'm going to be the best damn runner in the world!I'll try very hard, no matter what it takes!"

"Don't push yourself too hard," Dais said."You'll have your moment.Be patient."

"You don't think I could do it, do you?" she accused.

"Of course I do, Amara," Dais sighed, "all your practice will soon pay off.But don't try hard."

"Are you afraid I'll hurt myself?"

"I didn't say that," Dais said, "here, sit down."He took her hand and they sat down on the curb."Listen, I'm only saying you should keep your opportunities open.Balance things out.If you focus on just running then you'll be imbalanced."

"I know, I know," she moaned, "you're starting to sound like Michelle now."

"Don't try too hard," he told her."Or it won't be as much fun.It's fun to you, isn't it?"

"Well, yeah."She said."I just want to be the best there is."

"Let me give you some advice when you're running," Dais said.

"Okay."

"Pretend that there's someone waiting for you at the finish line."

"I've always ran like I was running away from something," Amara said.

"Well, it is time for a change," Dais said, "now it's time for you to run _to_ something."

"But if something was chasing you," Amara stated, "wouldn't you run faster? Just makes more sense to me."

"Don't run away from anything, Amara," Dais informed, "either fight it or hide from it but never run away from it."

"What about the saying 'you can run but you can't hide?'" she joked.

"Sometimes that's not even true," Dais said with a smile, "I am the warlord of illusion," suddenly the scenery changed, "you know."

**First Running Meet**

** **

Amara stretched out before taking her place.There were a few girls she competed with before and she wondered if they were any better than the first time they ran together.She heard Michelle yelling good luck to her from the stands.Michelle waved to her and Amara waved back to her cousin.Strange though, she didn't see Dais in the stands with her.Wouldn't he be here too?  
  


"On your mark, get set, go!" the ref shot the gun in the air and the runners took off.Amara was in third place but at least she wasn't last.She kept her face forward and her pace steady.She started to fall a bit behind and then she remembered what Dais said to her.

_Run like you are running to somebody._

_ _

With these words in her mind, she picked up her pace and pictured someone waiting for her at the finish line.The person's face was fuzzy and dark so she couldn't really think of who the person was.Each lap the figure got clearer and clearer but she still couldn't recognize the person in her mind.Now she was in second place and the finish line was only a few yards away.Finally, she was able to see the person in her mind. It was Dais.When she got into first place, Dais appeared behind about three feet behind the finish line.

"Dais!" she cried as she broke through the blue tape and jumped into his arms. She threw her arms around his neck.

"I told you that you could run faster if you pictured you were running to someone," he breathed in her ear.

"Yeah," she panted, almost out of breath, "especially when the person is you."She smiled and pulled back. Even though she was still catching her breath, she kissed Dais on his mouth.

**Motorcycle Season**

Amara checked her bike before starting the race.She wouldn't want it to blow up or anything like when the brakes were out that one time. If it weren't for Dais, she would be at the bottom of a chasm.Strapping on her helmet, she looked up to the stands. This time, Dais was there.He shouted good luck to her.Even the rest of the outer sailor scouts and warlords were there. Amara sat down on her bike and started the engine.

The runway was a street that they had to go down.There were many obstacle courses they had to go through. Some were nervous but Amara was prepared.All she had to do was picture Dais waiting for her at the finish line.The racers took off down the road and the crowd was cheering.There was a tight turn down the corner. Everyone was able to make the turn._Looks like I'm not racing with amateurs here,_ Amara thought to herself. 

Next they had to do a big jump and still everyone made it; most of them were close calls.Amara was in the lead now and she did all the obstacles with ease.They went back to the starting point, which was the finishing line.

Amara made a wrong move in judgment.She turned too fast on a corner and her motorcycle fell out from under her.She fell on the pavement and rolled a couple of times.The crowd groaned in pain for her.Michelle stood up and screamed her name.Sekhmet stood up and placed his hands on her shoulders to help calm her down.Dais looked at her and hoped that she will get up. Both Hotaru and Trista stood up, covering their mouths with their hands.Anubis and Kale felt like they couldn't move.

Amara wasn't moving.She felt like she broke her legs or something.She scolded herself for getting hurt.Two racers stopped to help her and the rest of the racers went on like her accident was no big deal.

"Are you alright?" the first racer asked.

"I think I broke one of my legs," Amara replied."It really hurts."

"At least you can feel it," the second one said, "I wouldn't want you to be paralyzed or anything."

"Hey, don't' scare her!" the first racer scolded.

Michelle couldn't stay in the crowd anymore and ran down to Amara, "Amara, are you okay?" she asked.

"You know her?" the first racer asked.

"She's my cousin," Michelle replied and knelt down in front of Amara, "we need to get you to a doctor."

"But the race---" Amara protested.

"Forget the race, my friend," the second racer said, "what really matters is that we take care of that leg of yours." She got one side of her and the other racer got on the other side.

Amara smiled, noticing they were girls from another team.She was relieved that she wasn't the only girl interested in motorcycles.They helped her up and she used them to get off the track safely.

Dais came down the stands, "I'm so glad you're alright.When I saw you weren't getting up I thought---"

"I'm fine," Amara growled.

"What happened?" Dais asked, "did something happen to your bike?"

"No," she growled again, "I checked it before we started the race.I just messed up."

"Don't feel bad," the first racer said, "we all make mistakes."

"Let's get you to a hospital," the second racer lifted her head to see an ambulance, "ah, good."They sat her down on the stretcher and paramedics took Amara to the hospital.

"Thank you for helping her," Michelle thanked, "that was very kind of you guys."

"Hey," the first racer said, "I couldn't just leave her there."

"Yeah," the second racer looked at the others who thought that the race was more important, "unlike _some_ people."

Amara refused to take any sedatives or medicine.The nurse said that they needed to operate on her leg but Amara didn't want an operation. She was still upset with herself._How could I mess up?What did I do wrong?_

The nurse didn't know what to do and went to complain to the doctor who was out in the hall talking to Michelle and the others.

"Doctor, she's being complicated," the nurse said, "She won't take any pain killers!"

Michelle sighed, "sounds like Amara.She doesn't like to take any medicine.I've told her she tries too hard to be best but she never listens to me."

"But we have to operate on her leg," the nurse instructed, "and we can't when she's still wide awake."

"Nurse Jones," the doctor said, "wait until she falls asleep and we'll give her the sedatives."

"That will be a long wait," the nurse groaned.

"I've got an idea," Dais said, "Can I see her?"

"If you can get her to go to sleep," the nurse mumbled, "good luck.You'll need it."The nurse left to check on other patients.

Dais walked into Amara's room. Her head was tilted away from him and she was looking out the window.

"How are you feeling?" Dais asked.

"Do you have to ask?" she demanded."I could have won today."

"You're still upset about the game?" Dais nearly laughed.

Amara moved her head, "it's not funny, Dais."

"Sorry," Dais sat down on the edge of her bed, "at least you tried."

"I had to be the only person who crashed," Amara grumbled.

"At least you're okay," Dais said.

"I've been racing half my life," Amara complained, "what did I do wrong?"

"Don't worry about that," Dais told her, "relax, Amara.That's all over now.I know you're mad."

"I could have won."

"There's still another game coming up, maybe you'll win next time."

Amara rolled your eyes, "whatever."

"Close your eyes," Dais said.

"What?" 

"Close your eyes," he repeated.

"I'm not in the mood for one of your illusions, Dais."Amara muttered.

"Just close them, please," Dais sighed, "I'm trying to help you here."

"Okay," she closed her eyes, "they're closed."

"Now I want you to picture that you're standing in a beautiful field--"

"You're so predicable, Dais," Amara blurted.

Dais ignored her, "and there's a warm breeze blowing.You are dressed in a long blue dress and you don't have a care in the world.You're far away from buildings and motorcycles."He began to massage her shoulders.Amara flinched and then finally relaxed as the circles of his fingers removed the achy ness from her body.

Amara smiled and moaned silently.She tilted her head to the side as Dais continued to massage her shoulders.He kissed her temple."Then what?" Amara asked, her angriness leaving."Are you there too?"She wanted to listen to more of what Dais was saying, just to hear his calm, deep and warm voice.

"Yes, I am," Dais said, "but you don't see me.We're looking for each other in the field."

"Playing hide and go seek?" Amara joked.

Dais smiled, "something like that."

"I find you behind a tree," Dais went on, "I surprise you by wrapping my arms around you.You scream and laugh and turn around."

Amara sighed with her eyes still closed.She began to see in her mind what Dais was saying.It was so vivid, like one of his illusions.She could feel the grass under her feet.She could hear the wind blowing against the trees.She could smell the fresh flowers all around her.

"Then we fall into the grass in each other's arms," Dais continued and he stopped massaging her shoulders and wrapped his arms around her like he was saying.Amara leaned into his embrace.She felt his warm breath on her cheek, "we're laughing as we look at each other.You lay your head upon my chest and we look up at the clouds in the sky."

Amara blinked and for a split second, saw the field Dais was talking about. It was like they were there together and out of the hospital room.She soon forgot about hurting herself.

"I tell you that I will love you even until the sky falls down on us," Dais whispered into her ear, "you are as important to me as the only cloud in the clear blue sky."{Asleep yet?I'm about to fall asleep and I'm writing it!}

"Hmm," Amara moaned, lost in slumber land.But she did hear what Dais just said to her and it stuck in her mind, "I love you, too," she whispered in her sleep.

Dais smiled and kissed her temple. He laid her softly against the pillow and pulled the covers around her.He touched her cheek and kissed her again before getting up.Taking a hold of the doorknob, he looked behind him andsaw a small smile upon her face.

When he stepped out of the room and closed it slowly, Michelle ran up.

"Dais is she--"

"Shh," Dais hushed with his finger before his lips, "your cousin is sleeping."He smiled and walked passed her.

Michelle smiled and nearly laughed.She watched Dais walk away as Sekhmet wrapped his arm around her.

Everyone waited until the operation was over.It was a long wait and Michelle was a bit worried.

"Should an operation take this long?" she complained, looking at her watch.

"I'm not the right person to ask," Sekhmet said, handing her a small Styrofoam cup of hot chocolate.

"Maybe Trista could make the time go faster," Kale said.

"No I can't," Trista said.

"Well, that answers my question."

The doctor came out, "the operation was fine.She's resting now and--"

"No I'm not," Amara came out in a wheel chair with a big smile on her face, "I feel completely refreshed!"

The doctor gasped, "You're supposed to be…but…you…"

"Oh please, I've been in that bed long enough," Amara groaned, "What I really need is some fresh air!"

"I'll be happy to escort you there!" Dais laughed and took a hold of the handles, pushing Amara along.

Three days later Amara's leg was miraculously completely healed.She went to compete in another motorcycle race but first she played hide and go seek with Dais in a field just like he talked about.

She was hiding behind a bush and he surprised her parting the bush and pushing his face through. "I've found you."

"How did you know I was here?" she demanded, rising to her feet."I was expecting you to look for me behind a tree!"

"Amara, you can't hide from me no matter how hard you try!" Dais he stepped backwards and folded his arms.

"I wouldn't' have it any other way," Amara jumped up and threw her arms around him.They fell into the grass in one another's arms.She laid her head upon his chest. She didn't have to try too hard to love Dais.That happened all by itself.

**The End! Wasn't that cute?Review please…man, I'm so relaxed now, how about you guys?**


End file.
